Running news, tips, reviews

Stop tripping all over everything in the dark with these awesome shoe headlights

There is a path in Arlington, Va., and my running partner and I know every bump and groove. We have to! Otherwise, on those 5:30 a.m. runs, we’d fall flat on our faces. Runners know the importance of being seen. It’s promoted in winter clothing campaigns and by safety officials. Sometimes, we get so wrapped up in making sure cyclists and cars can see us, we forget how important it is for us to see where we are going. I never loved running with a headlamp, and the clip-on lights didn’t illuminate the ground enough for me to avoid cracks or worse — roadkill.

These lights clip directly onto your laces and give you 270 degrees of visibility in front of the runner and around you. Bonus! There are two red tail lights facing behind for traffic visibility.

“Night Runner 270 was developed by athletes for athletes to safely light the way for runners, walkers, hikers, and cyclists from dusk ’til dawn without the hassles of headbands, belts, or straps,” the company says.

Here’s the important information: The lights are rechargeable, waterproof, do a great job lighting up everything around them and don’t shine up in your face.

The idea caught on quickly. More than 500 backers from 28 countries raised $43,000 in a spring Kickstarter campaign.

At first, I had an issue with one of these lights falling off my shoe. The problem was that I was clipping them on too far down my shoe. “The units have to be up high, on the first or second row of laces next to the knot. Put the units on first and then tie the shoe. The bottom of the clip must be completely under the laces. If the end of the clip is too low, the movement of the toe box pushes the units up,” a spokesperson explained.

So I adjusted, and they are snug, bright and weigh almost nothing. I forgot they were on my feet — kind of. After all, I could actually see!